Deconstructing A Myth: BP/Boa

[Bedlam]

So I just heard a story from a 4th person. None of these people know each other so the chances of them ALL knowing the same person is pretty much nil. I'd love to hear that other people from across the country (or in another country!) have heard this same story and that it's a complete myth and impossible.

"Someone that knows someone" had either a ball python or boa constrictor (varies depending who's saying it) who was a complete angel and slept in the same bed as this "someone" (always a woman). The person woke up several mornings to the snake laying in a straight line along side her on the bed. This person then took it to the vet after several mornings of this and received the notice that the snake should be put down at once. The reason behind this is that it's "gone bad" and is now sizing the person up to see if it can EAT HER.

Now I'm very much aware that this is complete rubbish. So the part of people reinforcing a point of its impossibility isn't much of a concern to me. The part I'm REALLY looking for here is to see who else has heard it and where they're from!

So who's heard this one??

 

[halfwaynowhere]

oh, of course its true. Because you know, all single women snake keepers sleep with their snakes in bed with them... (seriously, WTF?)

I read this somewhere, though I've never heard anyone actually say it in person... I think when I read it, it was about a little boy who always slept with the snake in his bed...

 

[arachnocat]

My snakes always size up their prey by smelling it all over. So if you're snake smells your head, then your toes, you're in trouble
I don't think snakes measure their prey with their body length to see if it will fit. That would be funny though.

 

[Red Eyes]

Here is link about this myth ... http://www.snopes.com/critters/snakes/measured.asp.

 

[Bedlam]

Thanks! I knew it was complete bull but knowing that the tale has spread far and wide puts the final nail in the coffin. 2 people owe me drinks!

 

[kitty_b]

i actually heard this a few months ago. i forget how. but i thought it was a joke.

 

[ShellsandScales]

What a joke. I've heard lots of variations of this story. Like the friend of the friend woke up already swallowed up to their waist and had to kill the snake to get out. What a bunch of crap. There are realistically only a handful of snakes in the world that are even large enought to eat a healthy adult human.
I used to let my 8 foot RTB sleep in my room with me. A snake like that wouldn't even be able to eat a child let alone an adult.
I mean what, you've got Reticulated python, African rock python, Indian python, Anaconda, and maybe, MAYBE a VERY VERY large Burmese python, as the only species even capable of eating human sized prey. And it would take a very large specimen of any of those species to pose any substantial threat.

People just like to believe whatever they hear, especially if its dangerous and exciting.

 

[tarandrew]

So I just heard a story from a 4th person. None of these people know each other so the chances of them ALL knowing the same person is pretty much nil. I'd love to hear that other people from across the country (or in another country!) have heard this same story and that it's a complete myth and impossible.

"Someone that knows someone" had either a ball python or boa constrictor (varies depending who's saying it) who was a complete angel and slept in the same bed as this "someone" (always a woman). The person woke up several mornings to the snake laying in a straight line along side her on the bed. This person then took it to the vet after several mornings of this and received the notice that the snake should be put down at once. The reason behind this is that it's "gone bad" and is now sizing the person up to see if it can EAT HER.

Now I'm very much aware that this is complete rubbish. So the part of people reinforcing a point of its impossibility isn't much of a concern to me. The part I'm REALLY looking for here is to see who else has heard it and where they're from!

So who's heard this one??

A friend of mine who doesn't actually own, or know for that matter anything about snakes told me this. Only, it was a couple that were supposed to BOTH be eaten - haha.

 

[Mushroom Spore]

I used to let my 8 foot RTB sleep in my room with me. A snake like that wouldn't even be able to eat a child let alone an adult.

Um. I hope I'm reading this wrong - an eight foot snake wouldn't be able to eat you, no, but it could sure as heck kill you. It could kill you without even meaning to, especially if you're asleep. Why would you do this?

 

[Steven Valys]

I mean what, you've got Reticulated python, African rock python, Indian python, Anaconda, and maybe, MAYBE a VERY VERY large Burmese python, as the only species even capable of eating human sized prey. And it would take a very large specimen of any of those species to pose any substantial threat

I guess you've never owned any of those? I had three of those five in my younger days. The 28" green anaconda neonate I had was by far the strongest snake I had ever dealt with, for it's size. It wrapped around my arm once and wouldn't let go. I couldn't budge it with one free hand. Any constrictor can take out an adult with no problem. Pinch off your common carotid artery for a couple minutes. It doesn't take long for the magic to happen.

 

[rustym3talh3ad]

now my question on this story is A: why would a snake stretch out to see if it could take u down...they cant see like that...thats like humans trying to look at the back of their head without a mirror? and B: what kinda vet was this man becuz how would/could he know that the snake was actually plotting the demise of the owner, is he a GD*** snake whisperer? this story is the stupidest thing ive ever heard, and ive told some really dumb stories in my life.

 

[Bedlam]

It's amazing what the uneducated mind will believe. The worlds shark population is QUICKLY diminishing and there aren't too many countries out there that are trying to stop this from happening simply because the uneducated mind believes that a shark would kill you at the first opportunity. It was in Jaws so it had to be true, right??

There's so many flaws in this story but one of the biggest reasons why urban myths are so easily spread is because it is fueled by FEAR and facts that the average person wouldn't question. I was amazed at how many times I heard this story from people. Obviously people involved in the hobby in some way or another (I've never owned a snake but I still know better) will see the flaws in the story quickly but the average person probably doesn't know any better and when presented with the "facts" in the story they believe it.

OR, to put it simply, if there's a scary movie made about an animal then the general public is willing to believe a scary story when they hear it.

 

[rustym3talh3ad]

haha and we say that we are the most intelligent creatures? my A$$ we are we cant even separate total crap from actual fact. if we're so damn smart stop letting the news and media feed us so full of garbage that uwe turn into spew spouts for untrue and totally opinionated "facts" :?

 

[pitbulllady]

It's amazing what the uneducated mind will believe. The worlds shark population is QUICKLY diminishing and there aren't too many countries out there that are trying to stop this from happening simply because the uneducated mind believes that a shark would kill you at the first opportunity. It was in Jaws so it had to be true, right??

There's so many flaws in this story but one of the biggest reasons why urban myths are so easily spread is because it is fueled by FEAR and facts that the average person wouldn't question. I was amazed at how many times I heard this story from people. Obviously people involved in the hobby in some way or another (I've never owned a snake but I still know better) will see the flaws in the story quickly but the average person probably doesn't know any better and when presented with the "facts" in the story they believe it.

OR, to put it simply, if there's a scary movie made about an animal then the general public is willing to believe a scary story when they hear it.

You SAID it, Bedlam! People are gullible and are far more willing to believe what they hear on the news, or see in a fiction movie, than to believe the truth. I've encountered many people who actually believe that Anacondas can reach sizes of 150 feet, can move at speeds greater than a cheetah, actively hunt and stalk humans on land, can reason and second-guess their human prey, etc....just like in the movie. They don't want to believe the truth at all. The public...and the politicians...don't want to believe that a Pit Bull Terrier is (on average) a 55-lb. dog bred NOT to show aggression towards humans at all, which suck abysmally as guard dogs because they love everyone, burglar and non-burglar alike, and that they DO NOT have "locking jaws" or even unusually strong jaws, for that matter. The news media portrays them as huge monsters that can bite through steel I-beams and levitate and float through solid walls, that cannot be killed even with high-powered bullets, and have some defect in their brains that cause them to "go crazy" without warning. It's easier to believe the BS than to believe the truth, which isn't anywhere near as exciting. I guess it all goes back to our psychological need for "monsters", as well as the increasing immaturity of the adult populace, who now feels a childlike need to have a protective all-powerful authority figure, i.e. the government, looking after us and protecting us from the afore-mentioned monsters.

pitbulllady

 

[redsaw]

Saw this today.
http://www.repticzone.com/forums/Anacondas/messages/1867048.html
-My mom knows a woman who let her 15 foot Burmese roam the house. One morning the snake woke up next to her, the next morning this happened to, and so on. The lady who owned the snake got worried about it and brought it to the vet. The vet confiscated it from her because the snake was sizing her up and getting ready to eat her

 

[clam1991]

i think the reason it was actually getting next to the person was possibly warmth
not sizing up to see if it could eat her

im sure a snake would kill its prey before checking that

 

[pitbulllady]

Saw this today.
http://www.repticzone.com/forums/Anacondas/messages/1867048.html
-My mom knows a woman who let her 15 foot Burmese roam the house. One morning the snake woke up next to her, the next morning this happened to, and so on. The lady who owned the snake got worried about it and brought it to the vet. The vet confiscated it from her because the snake was sizing her up and getting ready to eat her

Now THINK about it-since when did veterinarians become law enforcement officers? A veterinarian has no more authority to confiscate an animal than a plumber or an electrician does! They can report animal owners whom they have a reason to suspect are abusing or neglecting their animals, including those that are involved in illegal and cruel activities like dog-fighting, but not for something asinine like this! I STRONGLY suspect this story, too, is 100% Urban Legend, as it reminds me far too much of the "Choking Doberman" story or the "Mexican Chihuahua-that's-really-a-rabid-rat" story. Both involve veterinarians taking the law into their own hands to intercede for the safety of human client.

pitbulllady

 

[Blonc]

Well.. I know we've got this urban myth in Sweden as well The version I heard had the girl phoning the vet who told her to lock herself into her bathroom and call the police so they could come and kill it.